Welcoming You with Open Arms

We had a really terrific weekend at the Tenth Amendment Center, and it just felt wrong for me to channel negative energy, despite concerns I had that I wanted to address. So instead, I decided to take some of those frustrations and use them to write something I considered more positive – a letter to a friend. Though I do have someone in mind, I also realized that there are other people out there in similar situations, and that you might have a friend you would write a similar letter to. If that is the case, please feel free to pass it along.

Dear Liberty Friend,

I want to say thank you.

Thank you for your hard work. For your family values. For working on behalf of people who don’t know and/or possibly don’t care that their liberty is slipping away day by day. Thank you for being a cheerleader to others of us who sometimes feel like we are just trudging through the muck. It’s nice to know someone’s got your back. Thank you for your friendship – and great conversation over cold beer.

I also want to say I am sorry.

I’m sorry for the jerks you’ve had to deal with, and that they didn’t recognize your value. I’m sorry that there are many so called “Christians” in the liberty movement, who forgot to read that part about you being fearfully and wonderfully made, and how the second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. Their behavior grieves me. I’m sorry that when they say they believe in freedom, what they really mean is freedom from being associated with people who don’t believe as they do. Freedom from having to see anything they don’t like. Freedom only for them, not for you. Which is really no freedom at all.

I’m sorry the liberty movement sometimes eats it’s own.

But I have some good news! It’s not all like that. Some of the most incredible people I know are in this. They’re out there – all over the place. You might not see each other, but they appreciate you, like I do.

They get it.

And for the record, you arefearfully and wonderfully made. For this time. For a purpose. We need you. In whatever ways you can, keep fighting.

I know you will.

And as for those others, let them fight and devour each other. Let them make the choice to give themselves over to fear, anger, hatred. They are really only making us stronger in having to deal with them – they reiterate the point, if you will. Because we already know the best part of all this… that people who truly understand freedom, have a deeper capacity to love and appreciate one another, and can disagree while still living side by side. In peace. Because we know – you can’t have freedom without openly extending it to others. Sometimes that act is also called grace. And it’s contagious.

On a slightly less serious note, I think you rock. They snooze, they lose! Just remember, if you ever need even more on your plate – the Tenth Amendment Center will always welcome you with open arms. And give you pie.